Taking Liberty on a Busy Weekend

24Feb

The weekend started with a flurry of activities: a haircut and wedding gift to buy on Saturday morning, which led to an afternoon of clothes shopping (successful!), followed by a rolicking night out with the girls. I woke up late the next day and wanted to go for a ride–a real ride, not an around town shopping kind of ride. But I also wanted to buy a gift for friends with a new baby, deliver it and take time to hold the little guy. And I needed groceries.

But I really really wanted to get out to the trails now that they’re finally lush and green after the winter rains.

On days I do long road or trail rides, it’s hard to do errands too. Once I get home all tired and sweaty the last thing I want to do is hop on another bike for a grocery run, especially after I’ve relaxed in the shower. The only thing less appealing is driving my car to the trailhead or ride start just so I can do errands on the way home.

To get it all done in an afternoon I turned to Liberty, my cyclocross bike turned off-road touring machine. She has knobby tires and low gears for trails in the foothills, a road bike geometry for efficient cross-town riding and a lightweight rack and small panniers for shopping. Liberty gives me freedom to do it all.

A gift was bought, a baby was held, and groceries was checked off my list. In between it all was a refreshing 27 mile road + trail ride with views across the bay on a clear spring-like day. I love having Liberty.

When you’re pinched for time, how do you squeeze in time for a good long ride AND get your errands done?

3 responses to “Taking Liberty on a Busy Weekend”

Nicely done! I like the name “Liberty”. Do all your bikes have names? And how many bikes do you have? I’m just about to welcome a new bike to my stable. I can pick her up next Saturday and she is a 29er… I’m so excited. And thanks for liking my blog. I love yours! :-)

You can see most of them in this post, except for Susie Q and Ginger, who I bought more recently. http://wp.me/p1sDc4-UN I ride six of them regularly. I probably should sell Lily, but she’s got sentimental value.

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